Ramping Up on the Windows Azure Platform: 200 Level

I was recently asked to put together some material for consultants with the goal of getting to a “200 Level” of knowledge on the Windows Azure Platform and its breadth of capabilities. I thought this would be an opportune time to revamp a previous “getting started” post that I did with some updated content. Below is a 10-hour self-paced training plan, design for bringing someone up to that 200 level…

Read: Understanding the Different Platform Components (~1 hour)

Take a few minutes to read a brief overview of some of the different features of the Windows Azure Platform. Think of these as building blocks. They can be used individually or together to solve problems and build applications.

Watch: Explore Sessions from the Learn Windows Azure Event (~3 hours)

Microsoft put on an all-day virtual training event late last year on Windows Azure via Channel9. Explore some of the sessions from notable Microsoft folks such as Scott Guthrie, Dave Campbell, and Mark Russinovich.

Scenarios: Get a feel for what scenarios are being highlighted for cloud. Are you working in these areas today in your current or previous projects?

Case Studies: Get a feel for some of the different case studies that exist today. Browse the case study gallery and pick 2-3 to read.

Interoperability: The Developer Center is a great place to start to get a feel for the different languages and technologies that work with Windows Azure. Take a few minutes to browse around and check out the content for .NET, Java, Node.js, and more. Note all of the tutorials, how-to guides, and documentation of common tasks for the different languages. These can definitely come in handy down the line.

The Windows Azure Platform Training Kit continues to be one of the best resources for hands-on training. It contains great hands-on labs that are perfect for building your first applications on Windows Azure. Choose from labs around compute, storage, SQL Azure, Access Control Service, and more.

Recommended Introductory Hands-On Labs:

Introduction to Windows Azure

Introduction to SQL Azure

Introduction to Service Bus

Introduction to the AppFabric Access Control Service 2.0

After spending some time in these areas, you should have a good base level of understanding of the entire platform and its capabilities.